This invention relates to air guns, and more particularly to such guns which fire paintball tags. These are referred to in the specification as xe2x80x9cpaintball gunsxe2x80x9d. Particularly, the invention is for an accumulator chamber which forms part of, or is attached to, the front block of a gun, in order to provide additional air pressure and force for firing a paintball tag.
The paintball gun of the invention relies on a source of power which can be releasably attached to and detached from the paintball gun in order to provide the necessary force and thrust to fire the paintball tag through the barrel of the gun. This power source may typically be one which provides carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrogen, compressed air, or some other appropriate gas, which is maintained under pressure and released by the user of the paintball gun when the paintball tag is to be fired.
As mentioned, most paintball guns presently available run off CO2, nitrogen, compressed air or some other gas as a power source. In order to fire and project a paintball tag at the correct velocity, and to an acceptable distance, a specific volume of gas is required. In other words, upon appropriate triggering, a volume of compressed air or other gas is released from a power source chamber, and the forces are channeled through various chambers in the gun, eventually releasing in the paintball tag chamber to drive the paintball tag from the gun. Additionally, a specific and desired pressure must be attained in order to effectively fire the paintball tag.
Recent developments in the paintball gun industry have resulted in the advent of the well-known self-cocking mechanism for such air guns, so that, when the power source is released for firing the paintball tag, some of the energy produced thereby is used by the gun to self-cock the necessary mechanisms and to place another paintball from the paintball magazine into the barrel for firing. As a result of this development, the paintball gun has been found to consume available gas pressure and energy needed for projecting the paintball tag at the desired rate beyond its ability to replenish the available gas in the chamber. Consequently, there is a xe2x80x9cdrop-offxe2x80x9d of air pressure in the air chamber. In other words, the various steps and procedures required to fire the paintball tag at an appropriate rate and distance, self-cock the gun to render it ready for firing the next paintball tag, and place a paintball tag from a magazine into the gun barrel for firing, consume a considerable amount of the compressed air power source available for a single firing, thus compromising the ability of a paintball gun to fire the paintball tag the preferred distance.
According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a gas accumulator for attachment to a gun having a gun body, a compressed gas chamber in the gun body, and a compressed gas power source, the accumulator comprising: a body portion defining a gas accumulator chamber; connector means for connecting the accumulator releasably to the gun body so that the gas chamber in the gun body is in communication with the accumulator chamber; and compression means in the accumulator chamber which is compressed when the accumulator chamber receives gas under pressure, the compression means forcing gas from the accumulator chamber into the gas chamber when the gun is fired. Preferably, the body portion is an elongated tubular member.
The compression means may comprise a floating piston within the tubular member and a spring urging the floating piston in a direction so as to force gas tram the accumulator chamber into the gas chamber when the gun is fired. The spring may structured and dimensioned so as to provide a predetermined compressive force. The floating piston may structured and dimensioned so as to provide a predetermined compressive force.
Preferably, the connector means comprises a separate portion having a first end and a second end, the first end being connected to the body portion, and the second end being connectable to the gun body. The accumulator chamber may be of cylindrical shape, and may be substantially coaxial with the compressed gas chamber, when the gas accumulator is connected to the gun body.
In one embodiment, the connector means has an elongate section to pass through the front block of a gun.
In one aspect, the present invention addresses shortcomings in the prior art in so far as they relate to reduced pressure and force available by providing a front block accumulator, or an accumulator chamber, that attaches to the paintball gun through and existing hole in the front block thereof, and onto the gun body. The front block accumulator may replace the front block retainer bolt which is normally found in this position on the gun body.
The front block accumulator of the invention may slightly enlarge the compressed air chamber, and provide a spring-driven piston-type mechanism, both of which augment or supplement the compressive forces normally available in the gun, thus providing additional energy for operating the various mechanisms which rely on the compressed gas power source which may be activated upon firing of the gun. The increased size of the compressed air chamber permits a slightly larger volume of compressed air to be available as a power source, and this is coupled with the additional force provided by the spring and piston type head, which provide additional force to the outward movement of the compressed air, towards the paintball tag upon firing.
In one embodiment, the front block accumulator of the invention is designed so as to be easily integrated into existing paintball guns by simply removing the front block retainer bolt and inserting in its place the accumulator body which includes a threaded member received in the existing hole previously occupied by the front block retainer bolt.
Since the front block accumulator of the invention can be easily removed and replaced, it may also be possible attach to the gun body front block accumulators of the invention having differing sizes and specifications, so that, as desired, more or less compressive force is available in a particular application.
The front block accumulator chamber of the invention includes a spring, which is compressed under pressure when loaded, and the strength of the spring can be altered or changed by adjusting its physical characteristics such as the tension in the spring, its size, diameter or other features. In this way, the front block accumulator of the invention can be readily sized and dimensioned so as to achieve a particular purpose, or have a more effective and efficient firing capability in a given circumstance.